


Motion Sickness

by randomfandomimagine



Series: Imagines (Reader Insert) [47]
Category: Final Fantasy VII: Advent Children
Genre: Character Study, Crushes, Fluff and Angst, Gender-Neutral Pronouns, Other, Unrequited Crush
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-07-30
Updated: 2019-07-30
Packaged: 2020-07-25 03:47:38
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,812
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/20019433
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/randomfandomimagine/pseuds/randomfandomimagine
Summary: Cloud feels really insecure sometimes, especially when it is about his motion sickness. He wants to get over it, but it won’t be until he runs into Y/N that he will accomplish it.





	Motion Sickness

When I heard the knock on the door, I couldn’t help but to smile to myself. That had to be Cloud, so I quickly passed a hand through my hair to comb it and fixed my clothes before opening.

“Strife delivery service” He told me with that deadpan voice of his as I greeted him.

“Hi, Cloud” I took a good look at him and realized he still seemed pale.

He was a pale guy on his own, but whenever we met I had the feeling like he was… sick. Which would explain his constant broody demeanor.

“Hello, Y/N” Cloud replied quietly as he offered me my package.

“How’s Tifa doing?” I smiled at him as I signed the form that assured I received my order and then took the box.

In response, he just shrugged a little.

“Fine”

“Great! Tell her I say hi”

“Okay” He was already leaving, but I didn’t want him to. At least not yet.

“Cloud!” I held his arm, hoping he wouldn’t mind that gesture. “Before you go”

He looked at me for the first time, fixing his blue mako infected eyes on me.

“I was wondering…” I began to say bashfully. I was friends with Tifa, and I knew Cloud and all the guys at 7th Heaven pretty well but… With Cloud it was different, and it made me nervous. “If you’d like to hang out someday”

At first he didn’t say anything. His thin eyebrows just furrowed in surprise, confusion and deep thought as his eyes still lingered on me.

“I don’t know if…”

“Nothing fancy or anything” I quickly added, panicking when I realized he probably wasn’t up for it. “Just do something together, hang out for a while”

I stared at him expectantly, almost regretting having said anything. I knew I should have told Tifa about it first.

“No” He replied and, even if he sounded stern about it, there was also a mild sadness in his voice. “I’d rather not”

“But…” I mumbled in astonishment, watching how he was already turning around and starting to walk away. “Just…”

“Sorry” He simply said without looking back to me, barely loud enough for me to hear. Then he climbed back on his black motorcycle and drove off just like that.

I sighed, equally resigned and frustrated.

I just… wanted to get to know him, to be around him and help him. It wasn’t only that I thought he was interesting or that I was developing a mild crush on him, it felt like Cloud was a troubled guy and I just wanted to do something to change that. I knew he was a kind person, despite his indifferent exterior. I was determined to change whatever was causing him pain, even if it was just because of my stupid and somewhat childish crush.

And I knew where I could start. Smiling a bit to myself already, I walked back inside and closed the door behind me. Then I immediately headed for the phone, before Cloud could make it back to the 7th Heaven.

I dialed the number and waited a few seconds until someone picked up. A friendly voice replied from the other end.

“Hello?”

“Tifa?”

“Hey, Y/N! What’s up?”

“Hello! Sorry to bother, but I needed to talk to you”

“Sure! What is it?”

“It’s about Cloud…” I began to say, feeling a bit nervous.

“What about him? Didn’t he deliver that to you?” Tifa sounded worried yet exasperated. “I swear he was on his way!”

“No, it’s not that! He delivered it to me, in fact he just left” I paused for a moment, before saying what I called about. “It’s just that he looked a little sick and I got concerned”

“Oh, that!” By the tone in her voice, I felt like she had noticed about my crush on him. “It’s the motion sickness”

“He has motion sickness?” Now it made sense why he looked so pale every time we met, since he had always ridden his bike to my place.

“Yeah, he had gotten over it before, but lately he gets sick again” Tifa sighed, suddenly sounding exhausted, almost a little sad as well. “If you want to know my opinion, I think it’s his own way of punishing himself”

“What?” I uttered, dumbfounded. “P-Punish?”

“Cloud blames himself for a lot of things that aren’t really his fault, he’s…” She sighed again, affected by the subject. “He pretends like he wants to be alone, tries to isolate himself, but… Even if he doesn’t always answer the phone, he doesn’t throw it away either, does he?”

I grew silent, not really knowing what to respond to all that. Tifa must have noticed that she made me a little uncomfortable, because she clicked her tongue.

“Sorry, Y/N” Tifa muttered. “Maybe I shouldn’t have told you any of that, it’s just that I…”

“I know, it’s okay” It seemed to me like Tifa had needed to talk about it for a long time and she couldn’t really help herself.

Another silence filled the line, so I decided to avoid her the embarrassment and at the same time talk about what I called for.

“I want to help him” I told her, determined. “Maybe starting with his motion sickness”

“I mean, it would help him” Tifa took a deep breath and let it go. “I know he feels like he’s weak because of it, maybe if he got over it he would slowly get over the other stuff”

I didn’t want to ask about what ‘the other stuff’ was, knowing that Tifa had already told me too much. Even if I figured it had something to do with his past and with being a SOLDIER, as his mako infused eyes told me on their own. Besides, it felt intrusive to talk about someone else’s issues behind their back. I wasn’t a close friend anyhow, at least not for Cloud. Even if Tifa and I knew each other pretty well and were actually friends.

“I’ll give it a try” I smiled a little, hopeful. “I think I have an idea”

“Good luck with that” Tifa chuckled a bit, surely to relief the slight tension remaining. Despite it all, something told me that she had tried many times but Cloud was just too pigheaded.

“I’ll keep you updated” I joked for the very same reason.

We were about to hang up, but Tifa called me before we ended the call.

“Y/N?”

“Yeah?”

“Please, don’t tell him that I said any of that, okay?”

“I promise, Tifa”

-

I sat in the living room, watching my clock and wondering if it would take him too long to arrive. I had developed my plan, and if it worked, it would make Cloud realize he didn’t really get as sick as he though when riding his bike. Like Tifa had implied, it was in his head as his own way of making up for other things he felt guilty about. And even if my plan was a little bit cheeky and direct, it would hopefully work really well.

A familiar knock on the door startled me, causing me to jump to my feet and rush to open the door. There stood Cloud, carrying a small package and looking pale and sick like always.

“Hey” He deadpanned, briefly looking into my eyes before looking away.

“Hi, Cloud!” I excitedly told him, earning a surprised glance from him.

“I thought… you would be mad at me” Cloud mumbled, and it was actually the longest sentence I had heard him say.

“Me? Why?”

“I… Told you I didn’t want to…”

“Oh, that” I knew he was referring to when I asked him out and he rejected me. I waved my hand in the air, brushing it off. “It’s okay, I’m not mad, I get it”

I was suddenly questioning his answer, however, especially after talking to Tifa. What if there was something bigger behind his refusal to go out with me? She said he was trying to isolate himself, maybe that included me. But why would he push people away like that?

“Look, it’s nothing personal” Cloud frowned, still avoiding eye contact. “I just… it’s best if you…”

He didn’t finish the sentence, but my intuition was telling me something. I observed him, trying to read his expression. And wishing I could read his mind instead.

“If I stayed away from you?” Tifa said that he blamed himself for some things.

Many possibilities crossed my mind, and many scenarios, but my guess was that something had happened that made him think people were better off without him. I knew people like that, they felt like they were cursed and felt guilty for surviving their friends. Being surrounded by sick children because of the geostigma and the many catastrophes that happened in Midgar, I could understand his feelings. But that didn’t mean I wasn’t going to try and help him anyway.

He nearly winced, like he was reminded of something painful, and directed his glance to the floor this time.

“Cloud, you don’t have to explain yourself, you don’t owe me anything, okay?” I tried to sound as kind and understanding as possible. “But I don’t care about any of that, so my offer stands if you ever change your mind”

Surprised by my words, he immediately looked up again. He didn’t say anything at first, he just observed me, puzzled. Then he opened his mouth and replied.

“So you still want to go out with me?”

“Yup”

“Why?”

“I don’t know, I like you” I shrugged a little, now looking away myself. “I find you interesting, and you seem like a great person. Maybe it’s because I have a crush on you”

Cloud let out a gasp, but I still didn’t look at him. Even if I wanted to see his expression. But I ignored my racing heart and my burning cheeks, reminding myself that going through a little embarrassment was nothing compared to giving him a little boost. Maybe he needed to hear that he was good, that he was loved, that he wasn’t bad even though he might hate himself.

The silence was killing me, so I dared to cautiously look over to him. His piercing blue eyes settled over me, leaving behind that distant spot he was looking at but not watching, and he nodded.

I then noticed he was handing me something. I looked down to see the package he had brought me, which I had almost forgotten about.

“Oh, thanks” I smiled, taking the package I had ordered but that I definitely didn’t need.

Like the other time, he silently turned around and headed for the bike again. It was now or never, I needed to get my plan started. Or at least try to.

“Actually, Cloud” I called him, making him stop walking. “Could you help me with something?”

The blond seemed to be as confused as ever as he turned back around and stared at me. He awkwardly scratched his nape before locking eyes with me.

“I don’t think I can help you” He told me before I even specified.

“I really want to learn how to ride a bike, would you teach me?” I asked, pretending I hadn’t even heard him. Although, to be fair, he spoke lowly.

“Me?”

“Yeah! Who better than you, right?”

“I don’t know…”

I realized upon executing my plan how stupid it was. It sounded so much better in my head, but now that I had started it, I was going to commit to it.

I analyzed his behavior, wondering if he would admit he had motion sickness. But he didn’t, I didn’t know if it was because he was too proud to admit he had it or too ashamed.

“Please?” I insisted, giving him my best puppy eyes in an attempt to convince him or at least make him smile. It did neither.

“Sorry, but I can’t” Cloud quickly turned around and sat on his bike without even looking at me.

His hands had already closed around the handlebars, and I thought he would drive off just like that. But he shyly looked back at me, at first without saying anything.

“See you around” He said in the end, as though to soften the impact of his second rejection, before he definitely drove off.

-

I had desisted on my attempts to make my plan work. I talked to Tifa a lot on the phone, and I asked her about Cloud, but I didn’t order any new stuff again.

I really wanted to see him but I didn’t want to force him or make him uncomfortable. So I just hoped Tifa eventually managed to help him on her own way. Even if she tried to talk some sense into him, and I had a feeling that words wouldn’t work with him. Tifa was too soft on him, he needed a little lesson to finally realize what she had been trying to tell him for so long.

So I was pleasantly surprised when someone knocked on my door after a few days. And a big smile formed on my lips when I saw none other than Cloud standing there.

“Cloud!” I greeted him cheerfully, even more so than usual.

“I thought about it” He directly said, trying to avoid any embarrassment even if he was visibly flustered and was blushing a little. “And maybe I’m not the best teacher, but…”

Cloud sighed, making a long pause. I was about to say something, thinking he wouldn’t, when he continued.

“You’re always really nice and patient and I wanted to… try and help you” He motioned behind him, where I noticed his black motorbike parked.

“That’s so kind of you” I sweetly smiled at him, even if I wondered if Tifa had something to do with his change of heart. “I just thought I could buy a bike, you know? Run on some errands on my own, stop bothering you”

His eyebrows arched all of a sudden as he stared at me.

“You don’t bother me, if that’s why you’re doing it”

“I still want to learn” I shrugged it off, feeling like our first true conversation was much more awkward than I had imagined.

“Hop on” He motioned towards the bike with his head, so I smiled at him once again and went to the bike.

That would be interesting.

-

A few days later and after many lessons, Cloud and I had gotten close. Not that he was too talkative or open, but at least we got over the initial awkwardness and it was easier to talk to him. Even if, at the same time, it was harder because my crush on him just intensified as I got to know him better.

He was always very attentive and patient with me as he taught me, and always worried about my safety, not letting me ride alone in case I lost control of the bike. If only he knew I already knew how to ride a bike and him teaching me was just an excuse, a crucial part of my ridiculous plan.

“Y/N?” Cloud was trying to get my attention, but I had been too busy admiring his beautiful piercing blue eyes to notice he was trying to tell me something.

“What?” I violently blushed when I realized I had been staring at him.

“I said we should make sure you remember everything” I couldn’t tell if he noticed I was smitten at that moment, because he kept focusing on the bike I was sitting in.

“S-Sure!” I did my best to recover, showing him my calm yet upbeat smile that might eventually pass over to him. “Does that mean we can go for a little ride?”

“But let’s review the controls first” He paused for a moment, his blue eyes going over the bike. “Gas?”

“Here” I touched the left handle, but he shook his head, pursing his lips a little. “It’s this one”

I deliberately answered wrong to test him. To see if he would correct me and I was really glad he did, especially when he squeezed my right hand over the right handlebar. Despite the fact that he always wore black gloves and there wasn’t any skin to skin contact, I blushed a little at the gentle gesture.

Cloud quickly put his hand away as well, flustered by the touch. Even if after all these lessons some physical closeness, many times accidental, was to be had.

“Sure, yeah, sorry” I nervously said, clutching to the right handlebar. “It’s this one, I won’t forget now”

“Don’t worry, you’ll eventually get so used to it that you won’t have to think about it” Cloud distanced himself a little from the bike, almost like the closeness flustered him even more. “The more you ride it, the more you develop muscular memory about it”

That sounded oddly attractive because it sounded so smart. I realized I was staring at him again and mentally told myself off for being so into my crush on him.

“Can we drive around now, please?” I excitedly bounced on the seat and pouted with my bottom lip, and I could have sworn the corner of his lips twitched, almost smiling. But it was gone before I realized, making me think I had imagined it.

“Alright…” He sighed, pretending like he obliged reluctantly. Even if I knew he was actually a softie.

He passed a leg over the bike and sat behind me, timidly wrapping his arms around me from behind. I smirked to myself, treasuring the contact and closeness. Even if I felt butterflies in my stomach, which duplicated at the thought that I was about to execute the last phase of my plan.

“Ready?” 

“Yeah” 

I took a deep breath as I started the engine. Then I lifted my feet off the ground and rested them on the foot rests of the bike as soon as I started the engine.

“Good” Cloud observed, since I had successfully executed that part.

Then I smirked even wider and began speeding up, more and more. Cloud yelped very lowly and held on to me even tighter.

I laughed as the wind blew in my loose hair and forced him to stick his face to the back of my shoulder so it wouldn’t hit him in the face. His gloved hand gently yet urgently tapped my waist to catch my attention.

“Woo!” I happily exclaimed, enjoying the feeling of the speed and adrenaline. Also, having a slightly twisted satisfaction as my plan seemed to be working.

“Y/N!” 

“What!” 

“Slow down! It’s dangerous to go this fast!”

“But it’s so fun!”

I quickly looked over my shoulder to him. He was frowning in concern, but he didn’t look pale nor sick, which had almost confirmed that he subconsicously made himself sick and that he did get over his motion sickness. I grinned at him before I looked back at the road ahead.

“Stop right now!” Even if he had raised his volume, he didn’t sound angry, just slightly nervous, and I was sure it was for my safety still. “Stop the bike!”

“Fine!” I slowly reduced the speed until the bike eventually came to a halt. Then I made sure that the bike would stand on its own and got down.

Cloud did too, quite nimbly, and faced me. He seemed a little angry now, but there weren’t any traces of his motion sickness. I observed him carefully, watching out for any balance issues, paleness or apparent dizziness. He didn’t seem to be experiencing any of those things at the moment.

“What was that, Y/N?” Cloud sounded more disappointed than anything. “It was so reckless! You’re still learning, you shouldn’t-“

“Are you okay, though?” I worried, examining his face carefully. Still nothing.

That question disarmed him. He blinked repeatedly, baffled, before he hesitantly answered.

“Yeah, I’m… I’m okay” Then he opened his mouth, just to close it again when he realized he didn’t know what else to say to that.

“So you didn’t get sick?” I smiled, almost smugly, at the revelation of my evil plan.

“Wh-“ Cloud uttered, closing his eyes for a second and shaking his head. It seemed like he had just remembered about his alleged motion sickness. “How did you know?”

“Tifa… Tifa told me” I rolled my eyes, trying to take some blame off of her. “Because I pestered her so much about it. You just… I noticed you always looked sick when we saw each other when you delivered my things and…”

“And you did all this for me?”

“Well, yeah! I thought that maybe, if you focused on something else, you’d realized you actually have no problem riding a bike”

Cloud narrowed his eyes, observing me carefully. Over the last few days, I drew some conclusions based on what I learned about him. He seemed to realize that as well, because he unknitted his brow.

“I know it wasn’t the best way to make you realize it” I hurriedly say, being hit by a sudden wave of guilt. “But I was willing to risk you getting mad at me if that helped you in some way”

Cloud smiled at me, easing my nerves. Wait… Cloud was smiling? It was the first time I saw a genuine smile coming from him! It was a beautiful and heartwarming sight, no matter how small and timid it was.

“Thank you…” He sounded so genuine when he spoke as well, like he truly appreciated my efforts.

“My pleasure” I grinned back, really fighting the urge to hug him. I didn’t want to impose myself, also figuring it would make him uncomfortable.

Cloud averted his eyes, even if the faintest hint of a pinkish flush arrived to his cheeks as his smile softly faded away. It looked like he was fighting it anyway.

“Let’s get back” He muttered, letting his eyes fall over the bike again.

But before I could mount on the front, he did that himself. I obliged and sat at the back with him, wrapping my arms around him from behind and tightly holding on to him.

“Guess there’s no point in letting me drive now, is it?” I joked, trying to get a glimpse of that marvelous smile again.

“Yeah” He just replied, starting the engine once more.

Even if we had dismissed that endearing yet embarrassing moment, I knew it was just the beginning. The beginning of a long friendship and of Cloud’s own recovery.

“So you’ll go out with me then?” I tried again, feeling my heart racing as I dared to rest my chin on his shoulder.

Cloud’s head tilted towards me slightly, and I could sworn I heard him laughing under his breath before the loud sound of the engine swallowed the noise.

**Author's Note:**

> Thanks for reading, kudos and comments are appreciated! :)


End file.
